This was day 3, or the day when shit got serious. I know, I know, I just got your attention,  but before we talk serious shit, we will have to reflect on last night once again.

While the band was playing and the line dancing crowd was expending on the floor, Julian and Sasa (yes, you are seeing it right – Sasa the wasp) were contemplating the purpose of existence.

[This paragraph is just for Olja] Olja, my friendly advice, don’t let him mix tequila and beer or the “wasp” situation may be just the beginning of Sasa’s identity search journey.

I felt a bit left out in all this, so I found a local friend.

I also learned the truth about vodka.

On our way back to our hotel, the king of the road (pictured below with the appropriate head accessory) was setting the expectations for the off-road trip tomorrow.

We woke up to a lovely sunny day. The bikes were where we left them.

The only thing between us and climbing the nearby mountain on two wheels was breakfast.  Luckily,  right across the street, there was a 60’s style dinner where we overloaded on greasy calories.

Well, there was one thing we needed to fix before the take off – Sasa’s wrists. He felt some discomfort from the previous ride, so we had to fix him up with some bandages.

A quick ride from Sendpoint to Clark Fork, a little Idaho town, took us to the starting point of the off-road trail for today. But before we got there, I had to stop and take a picture of this welcoming flag on the very first house you see when you enter the town. It makes you wonder.

We were finally at the start of the trail. There was some leadership required. Therefore, I pointed in the right direction, the only available direction. Noticeable using a different finger than the guy with the flag in a previous Pic.

After a few minutes on gravel, we stopped for final bike adjustment, considering that we have 6 hours of serious off-roading ahead of us.

And off we go.

But not for too long. Julian’s shifter broke, and we spent an hour fixing it. Luckily,  we made it work, and we were back in action again.

After a half hour of climbing up the mountain,  the horizon started to open up, treating us to some stunning views.

The climb took us a couple of hours, and the road wasn’t that hard to ride. But everything changed on a way down. Instead of a nice, hard packed gravel, we were faced with a narrow trail full of loose rocks and borders. Also, a steep cliff on our right-hand side. If you go too slow, the rocks will take you down. If you go too fast, the front wheel steering will take you down. A true balancing act – a small mistake, and you are f-up!

Look at Sasa, landing it to the bottom of the mountain. We all made it safely, but it was not easy. Sasa’s rear brake disc was shining from overheating. This was the first true filling of adventure on this trip.

This was so stressful that Sasa had to take a moment to meditate and reflect.

The second section of the trail started with a nice hard packed mud with lots of waves, making us feel like riding a roller-coaster.

But shortly after, this changed into something that felt more like bushwhacking. The branches from the bushes and trees were hitting my handlebars on both sides at the times.

Than more rocks, mud, dust, rocks, mud, dust, … and finally paved road!!!

On our way to Wallace, we stopped to wash many layers of dust and mud off our bikes and riding gear.
The name of our hotel in Walloce is Stardust.

The friendly owner welcomed us with three bottles of beer. What a happy moment after chewing a road dust for six hours.

She recommended The Fainting Goat restorant for dinner.

While riding for hours through the wilderness today, we didn’t encounter any wildlife.  In a desperate need to get some wildlife pictures, Julian resorted to this last option.

After having a great dinner at The Fainting Goat, on our way back to our motel, we noticed that next to our hotel’s neon sign was a spacecraft.

Of course,  Sasa couldn’t resist the urge to try it out.

Today was only day three of our  adventure, but it was filled with lots of action and excitement. So much so that after the dinner, all three of us could think of ony one thing – going to sleep and getting rested for tomorrow’s ride.

Julian pics of wild life